THE CHAIRMAN of the Cyprus Olympic Committee (COC) yesterday denied allegations that financial interests were behind the exclusion of the Famagusta district from the planned Olympic flame route in July.
He was responding to DISY deputy George Georgiou, who told the House Education Committee he was saddened to see that all districts on the island had been included in the Olympic torch relay, apart from the Famagusta district.
Georgiou said the COC’s decision to exclude Famagusta was disrespectful to the area’s residents.
“I don’t want to believe that the decision was based on the financial interests of the sponsors,” Georgiou said.
The Athens 2004 Olympic Torch Relay is sponsored by Coca-Cola and Samsung, the committee heard.
Georgiou wondered who had decided to exclude the district, adding he had undisputed information that it was the COC which had the final say and not Athens 2004.
COC chairman Kikis Lazarides said the committee had apparently been given the wrong impression as to who had defined the route.
Lazarides insisted the decision was taken by Athens 2004 in co-operation with the International Olympic Committee, while the details and other technicalities were taken on by an American company with experience in such matters.
Lazarides said the route had initially included Nicosia only, and it was only after the COC’s objections that it was extended to cover other cities.
The flame is scheduled to arrive in Paphos between 10am and 11am on July 8, and leave from Larnaca at around 4pm the following day.
“The only way to cover other areas was to land in Paphos instead of Larnaca,” Lazarides said.
The relay will be carried out by a combination of runners and cars, because there is not enough time to cover the whole distance with torchbearers.
Lazarides said it was the first time he had heard of financial interests and assured the committee that sponsors were not involved.
He added the COC had not given up on trying to add more stops to the route, but warned it was near impossible to change things now.
Georgiou, however, insisted that the Famagusta district had been ignored. He said that, according to information he had from Athens 2004, it was up to COC to plan the route.
Lazarides rejected the accusations and asked for any information to be handed over to him.
Georgiou countered that instead of spending the night in Nicosia, the flame could be carried to Famagusta.
But Lazarides said it would not serve any purpose for the flame to be moved around in the middle of the night, adding the COC had done all it could.
“We argue with the officials; it was not us (who planned the route and timetable), it’s the American company,” he said.
“We even suggested flying it by helicopter,” he added.
But former athlete Lambros Kefalas, who hails from Famagusta, also argued that the schedule had been drawn up by the COC.
“From the COC’s excuses it looks like things are not what they seem to be,” Kefalas said.
He suggested cutting a little time from functions planned at Curium in the Limassol district and Petra tou Romiou near Paphos in order to make time for the flame to go to Famagusta.
“For a district cut in half I think they should have seen us under a different light,” Kefalas said.
Lazarides explained that the functions had been planned by the American company in co-operation with the Cyprus tourism organisation.
They selected the best areas with a tourist interest on the route, Lazarides said.
The torch relay is expected to be watched by millions of viewers around the world, with the functions seen as an excellent opportunity for publicity.
But Lazarides flatly denied commercial interests had played any role.
“This is utterly unacceptable,” he said.
The COC chairman challenged his accusers to attend a meeting with an official of the American company to see for themselves that the committee had nothing to do with the committee.
The Athens 2004 Olympic Torch Relay will be the first to travel the globe before returning to Greece.
The journey will last 78 days, covering a distance of 78,000 kilometres in the hands of 3,600 torchbearers outside Greece, who will carry it around the five continents.
